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The Blue Origin New Glenn rocket sits at Launch Complex 36 before its launch on January 13 in the early morning at the Cape Canaveral Space Station.
Miguel J. Rodriguez Carrillo | Getty Images News | Getty Images
The blue origin of Jeff Bezos on Monday announced the maiden launch of its New Glenn rocket after last-minute problems on the vehicle, in a blow to its bid to compete with Elon Musk’s SpaceX in the satellite space.
The launch was scheduled to take place from Cape Canaveral in Florida at 1 am ET.
“We have stopped today’s launch attempt to resolve a vehicle subsystem issue that will take us beyond our launch window,” said Ariane Cornell, Blue Origin’s vice president of space systems, during a livestream of the planned liftoff. .
She added that Blue Origin was examining opportunities for the next launch attempt. During its mission on Monday, the rocket was ambitious to land a first-stage booster on an offshore ship in the Atlantic Ocean for future reuse, with the second stage of the rocket continuing in orbit.
“The launch team is now working to de-tank and secure the vehicle. From there, we are going to evaluate what other things we want to do in our downtime, and this is what will guide when the next launch opportunity will be. well,” Cornell said Monday.
Standing at 320 feet tall, the partially reusable New Glenn rocket faced several delays to its liftoff time before the final decision to cancel its launch. The initial takeoff of the mission was repeatedly postponed until Monday due to unfavorable conditions at sea for the landing.
Delays, technical difficulties and failures are not uncommon in inaugural rocket missions. The Blue Origin project has been noted for its emphasis on sustainability.
“As part of the long-term vision, we really need to protect this planet. And the role of space technologies,” said Cornell. “It’s also why we started with reusable rockets and reusable engines.”
This breaking news story has been updated.
